Minnesota Twins vs New York Yankees Wild Card game

On Tuesday, October 3rd, Brian Dozier and the Minnesota Twins faced sensational rookie Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees in the American League Wildcard Game. Aaron Judge, who is six foot seven, hit a rookie record 52 home runs this year, breaking Mark McGwire’s record of 49 home runs as a rookie in 1987. Along with Aaron Judge, the Yankees have a good pitching staff, boasting an ERA over the 2017 season of 3.72. They also had an astounding 1,560 strikeouts! But the most impressive of the pitching staff? Rookie pitcher Luis Severino. Throughout the season he was constantly in the Cy Young Race (Award for the league’s best pitcher; awarded in both the National League and American League) and had an impressive 2.98 ERA with 230 strikeouts. He will start on Tuesday.

With the Yankees seeming to be the favorite in the Wild Card matchup, don’t count out the Minnesota Twins. According to Baseball Reference, the Minnesota Twins ranked 9th in the American League in home runs, with 206, and 4th in the AL in batting average, with .260. The Twins offense, lead by second baseman Brian Dozier, who lead the team in home runs (34) and RBI (93), will look for a spark from him in the Wild Card game. The Twins will also be looking for production from Joe Mauer, who finished the season with an impressive batting average of .305.

The ace of the Twins, Ervin Santana, also had an impressive season. He finished the year with a 3.28 ERA, 16 wins, 211.1 innings pitched, 5 complete games, and 167 strikeouts. With Ervin Santana on the mound Tuesday, the Yankees have something to fear.

Both with impressive rosters, powerful offenses, and great pitching staffs, this is bound to be a great matchup. The American League Wild Card Game will be played at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday, October 3rd, at 8 P.M. Go Twins!